Jacob's Pillow Reveals Week 1 Programming of 2024 Summer Festival

This summer’s Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival will open with a ballet company that sends up the conventions of romantic and classical ballet. Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo (“The Trocks”) will perform from Wednesday, June 26 through Sunday, June 30 in the historic Ted Shawn Theatre. The company, which is proudly celebrating 50 years, will present the second act of Swan Lake, their singular take on Paquita, and other crowd-pleasing favorites.

Week 1 of the Festival will also feature one-night-only performances on the outdoor Henry J. Leir Stage by Stockbridge Munsee musician, dancer, and storyteller Shawn L. Stevens on Wednesday, June 26; and The School at Jacob’s Pillow Contemporary Ballet Performance Ensemble on Saturday, June 29. For these one-night-only performances, tickets are available on a Choose What You Pay model. In addition, the Chicago-based tap dance group M.A.D.D. Rhythms will light up the Leir Stage on Thursday and Friday, June 27-28. Tickets to M.A.D.D. Rhythms start at $40. All performances are now on sale.

Also during Festival Week 1, Jacob’s Pillow will offer a free PillowTalk on Sat., June 29 at 4 p.m. with the artistic director of the Trocks, Tory Dobrin, discussing the company’s success captivating audiences with all-male performances of classic ballets since 1973. Off-site, Jacob’s Pillow welcomes Camille A. Brown’s community engagement initiative, Every Body Move (EBM), to Pittsfield for a multi-day community residency. This series of movement workshops led by dance artists Ethel Calhoun and Maxie Montilus will engage participants in the rich history of the cultural significance of African Diasporic Dance. Workshops are intergenerational, inviting participants of all ages to join in celebration and learning through dance.

“We are thrilled to open our festival by celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the humor and brilliance of the Trocks,” said Jacob’s Pillow Executive and Artistic Director Pamela Tatge. “So much has changed in this country since the Trocks were founded in the wake of the Stonewall Uprising in New York City. So many challenges remain, and the Trocks have persevered through it all. Audiences of all ages can’t help but get caught up in their humor and technical skill as dancers. Their gender-skewering approach to ballet and modern dance is such a phenomenon, and so worth celebrating.”

Regarding the outdoor stage, Tatge continued, “we couldn’t be more honored to open our Festival with Shawn L. Stevens, known as Red Eagle, a tribal member of the Stockbridge Munsee Band of Mohicans. He will bring the music, dance, and stories of the tribe back to their ancestral homelands from where they now reside in Wisconsin. It will be so moving to see them perform against the backdrop of the Berkshire hills.”